Just a couple of hours after losing the Serie A top spot to their biggest rivals Inter, AC Milan returned to the summit with a home 2-0 win over Genoa. Although they have played a match more than the Nerazzurri, this win is going to be a big boost for the team that dropped four points in their last two league games. At least they have remembered how to win games.The champions live it up on Friday night: Brozovic and Lautaro breeze past Spezia to go topAround 50,000 Milan fans at San Siro were hoping for an early goal that would at least prevent another dreadful goalless draw as the two they witnessed in the last ten days against Bologna and Torino. Those four dropped points could easily cost Rossoneri the title, but they couldn’t allow to think about it tonight. All they needed in the points. Thankfully, it started well.Portuguese mystery man Rafael Leao tends to so something spectacular in one game, then hibernate for two. Tonight, he was very much awake and was on hand to side-foot a nice goal on 11 minutes to make it 1-0 from a Pierre Kalulu cross.Milan’s midfield of Franck Kessie and Ismael Bennacer, who was making his 100th appearance for the club, controlled the match well. That confidence allowed Theo Hernandez and Kalulu, playing in a novel right-back position, to push forward.Alexis Saelemaekers had a glorious chance to double the lead when Kessie squared a nice low ball onto the Belgian’s left foot, but the former Anderlecht youngster embarrassingly blasted his shot well over from just seven meters out.Although Genoa are dangerously down in the table, their recent form has been improving under German coach Alexander Blessin, who has taken the difficult job in January. And Il Grifone had a couple of half-chances to get back into the game. Chilean midfielder Pablo Galdames in particular was dangerous, but couldn’t follow up his trickery and dribblings with shots on target.Olivier Giroud had the best chance to secure the win, but his volley from a Saelemaekers cross went agonizingly over. Thankfully for the Rossoneri and their coach Stefano Pioli, those misses weren’t punished. Instead, a pair of substitutes combined to finish the visitors off. Ante Rebic controlled the ball with his shoulder and hooked it over to Junior Messias on the far post, who tucked it into the net past Salvatore Sirigu at the second attempt. Game over!SERIE A – ROUND 33FridaySpezia – Inter 1-3 (0-1)/Maggiore 88 – Brozovic 31, Martinez 73, Sanchez 90+4/Milan – Genoa 2-0 (1-0)/Rafael Leao 11, Messias 87/Saturday13.30: (2.85) Cagliari (3.40) Sassuolo (2.55)15.30: (1.87) Udinese (3.60) Empoli (4.60)15.30: (1.94) Sampdoria (3.70) Salernitana (4.50)17.30: (1.42) Fiorentina (4.80) Venezia (8.50)19.30: (1.40) Juventus (4.90) Bologna (9.50)21.45: (1.72) Lazio (3.80) Torino (6.25)***odds are subject to change
